Sources tell TSN that free agent Marian Hossa has signed a one-year, $7.4 million deal with the defending Stanley Cup champions the Detroit Red Wings.

The 6-foot-1 winger scored 29 goals and 66 points in 72 games split between the Atlanta Thrahsers and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Hossa, 29, was acquired from the Thrashers at the trade deadline and helped Pittsburgh in its march to the Stanley Cups Finals. With 12 goals and 14 assists in 20 games, the 2008 playoffs went a long way to helping Hossa shed his reputation as a player that shone in the regular season, but struggled when it really mattered.

Originally a first-round draft pick by the Ottawa Senators in 1997, Hossa has been named to five NHL all-star teams and has recorded 299 goals and 648 points in 701 career games. Hossa was shipped to Atlanta as part of the Dany Heatley trade in 2005.

Might as well just let the Wings keep the cup now! Unbelieveable!

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July 2nd, 2008, 12:52 pm

LionsFan4Life

Fired Head Coach (0-16 record)

Joined: October 30th, 2004, 12:30 pmPosts: 2205Location: Austin, TX

I swear the Red Wings new team motto should be... Red Wings.. we don't rebuild we RELOAD!

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NEVER GIVE UP!

July 2nd, 2008, 1:47 pm

wjb21ndtown

LionsFan4Life wrote:

I swear the Red Wings new team motto should be... Red Wings.. we don't rebuild we RELOAD!

LoL... We are looking pretty sick... I hope we don't get screwed next year in FA though...

I still can't believe this happened and neither can most of the hockey world. Now, the Wings have to re-sign Filppula and a few other minor pieces and they'll be set. Unfortunately, it's going to be difficult to retain Hossa after this year. Zetterberg and Franzen will be UFAs and Hudler will be a RFA. They can't sign all of them, but they may be able to keep both Z and Hossa if they let the other two go. Decisions, decisions.

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July 4th, 2008, 11:03 am

wjb21ndtown

slybri19 wrote:

I still can't believe this happened and neither can most of the hockey world. Now, the Wings have to re-sign Filppula and a few other minor pieces and they'll be set. Unfortunately, it's going to be difficult to retain Hossa after this year. Zetterberg and Franzen will be UFAs and Hudler will be a RFA. They can't sign all of them, but they may be able to keep both Z and Hossa if they let the other two go. Decisions, decisions.

I'm not 100% sure that I would want Hossa over Franzen... Franzen had a sick playoffs, IMO he's more of a "true" Wing, he'll likely come cheaper, and he's younger (which is something this team needs)... I'd rather keep Z, Franzen and Hudler than Z and Hossa (who is already 29)...

Age really isn't an issue since Hossa is only 11 months older than Franzen. With that said, I'd have a difficult time letting the Mule walk, so that would be a tough decision. As for Hudler, I've never been a huge fan of his because of his size. It doesn't really affect him offensively, but it limits him defensively and along the boards. That's why he's usually stuck on the 4th line because he can't compete with the top two lines in terms of two way play. I'd hate to see him leave, but he is replaceable.

Chaz, NHL players can't restructure their contracts per the CBA. Besides, Zetterberg and Franzen are really cheap this year but their contracts expire after the season. Re-signing Z, Mule, and Hossa will be damn near impossible though.

What I was trying to say is, they know they can win the Stanley Cup now for the next few years if they can keep them all..now, I know both Z and Franzen deserve a big payday next year..but, if they work the contracts, maybe they can keep them, but it will be hard. heck, Hossa took a pay cut to win a cup, maybe Z and Franzen will work with the cap to win the cup..

July 13th, 2008, 5:07 pm

Murtyle

Mr. Irrelevant

Joined: April 16th, 2005, 3:23 pmPosts: 941Location: Hollywood, FL

Hossa's gone after next year... He came here to get his name on the cup, thats it... If that happens he'll go to the highest bidder... That won't be us...

July 13th, 2008, 5:52 pm

wjb21ndtown

Murtyle wrote:

Hossa's gone after next year... He came here to get his name on the cup, thats it... If that happens he'll go to the highest bidder... That won't be us...

I'm not 100% sure about that... We have more than one legitimate "star" up for contract after this next season. I think we'll keep at least two of them, but IMO they're all auditioning for the spot.

IMO this gives us a very healthy bargaining chip for Z... We won't have to give him crazy cash if losing him means that we can afford to keep BOTH Franzen and Hossa... IMO having Hossa on our roster opens the door to an interesting off-season next year. Further, the salary cap may expand to the point where we can keep all of them, as long as they want to sign 4 year deals...

I'm not saying that it is likely that he's going to stay. All I am saying is there are options and possibilities...

Further, while we don't "over-pay" or offer the "top bid" for any player, we don't need to. The Red Wings are NOT the Detroit Lions... They get a discount on all the players that they sign because 1) they're upfront, honest, and treat their players with respect and 2) because they're a damn good hockey team... While we might not be the "highest bidder" for Hossa next year, we won't likely be that far behind. I know if I were a player I would take a 1/2 mill to mill reduction in my salary to play for a respectible organization that wins a lot.

As I stated before, it's going to be tough to keep everyone after next season. The Wings already have $38M tied up in 6 forwards, 7 defensemen, and 1 goalie for 09/10. And that doesn't count Filpulla who will probably get between $2M and $2.5M per year as a RFA. If the cap goes up to $60M, that leaves approximately $20M to sign 8 more players to get to 23.

The general guess is that Zetterberg and Hossa would each get about $7.5M per and Franzen would sign for around $4.5M. If they signed all three, that would only leave $500K to sign 5 more players. That isn't going to happen. So, IMO, it comes down to either keeping Hossa or Franzen, since Zetterberg isn't going anywhere.

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July 16th, 2008, 11:46 am

UrlsGrrl54

Junior Varsity

Joined: June 24th, 2006, 7:37 pmPosts: 194Location: Atlanta, Ga.

LionsFan4Life wrote:

I swear the Red Wings new team motto should be... Red Wings.. we don't rebuild we RELOAD!

I'm LOVIN' IT!!! My fellow Bearaholics (@ various Bears boards) are crying that Detroit is being 'greedy' and that Hossa is going for the easiest route to winning a Cup. They thought he'd sign with the Blackhawks, hahahahaa!

Don't hate the player; hate the game! Marian made the right choice, baby.

_________________"You're either part of the solution or part of the problem."